Tiger Woods 

Tiger Woods doesn't understand why there's so much fuss over his friendship with Rory McIlroy.

He speaks so highly of the 23-year-old from Northern Ireland that some publications have referred to it as a bromance. And then there's Greg Norman, who said it was a sign of insecurity and that Woods is intimidated by McIlroy, who has won three of his last four events dating to the PGA Championship.

There also was an interview in a London newspaper how McIlroy dishes it out as well as he takes it during his banter with Woods, reports The Associated Press.

"You probably don't believe this, but I get along really well with a lot of guys out here," Woods said Thursday after opening with a solid round of 4-under 66 to share the lead with Justin Rose at The Tour Championship. "Rory is no different. I give it, they dish it and we have a great time. This is a fraternity out here. That's one of the great things about being out here for 17 years. You get to know the guys quite well."

One guy looked fairly familiar, especially at East Lake.

Woods has won and been runner-up three times in his last four trips to the tree-lined course about 10 miles away from downtown Atlanta. He knows how important it is to keep the ball in play, and to keep the ball below the hole. Woods wasn't perfect, but he managed six birdies on a warm day when the sun finally broke through cloud cover.

"I probably could have gotten a couple more out of it," Woods said about his opening round. "But I was probably right on my number."

Rose chipped in from about 20 yards short of the green on the 14th, the start of three birdies over his last five holes. It ended with an even bigger surprise. From the back of the green on the 221-yard closing hole, Rose faced a 50-foot putt with about 20 feet of break, and watched it snap to the right over the final few feet and into the hole.

He is No. 24 in the FedEx Cup standings, and a long shot to win the FedEx Cup and the $10 million bonus.